rei-ismyname

[rei-ismyname]

Kitty wants to kill Cyclops

Scott is futzing around in the snow with his messed up powers when Magik brings a new housemate - Kitty Pryde! Magik thinks they need to hash out their beef but Scott is just like 'TF are you bringing snitches to our secret treehouse?'

Kitty is not especially interested in snitching on the Uncanny team; she'd rather kill Cyclops and avenge dearly departed Xavier. She phases her hand into his brain while Magik spills the tea to everyone. Kitty looks *rough* - the impressionistic style gives her huge zombie vibes.

Scott negotiates by offering a piggyback ride but Kitty isn't interested in that either. He eventually talks her down but the resentment is definitely there. Imagine if she did kill him. Kitty came here to live; I daresay her new bunkmates would feel awkward if she walked inside with Scott's brains all over her arm.

Accepting that Cyclops wasn't in control of his actions during AvX (pass it on), Katherine's rage turns to grief. A rush of old memories brings her to tears and she decides that she won't murder Scott, actually.

All is transpiring as Magik foresaw. Neither Scott nor Kate actually move past it but this is how X-Men process grief. With threats of violence and callbacks to the mountain of trauma they have. At least they bond a little and express care for each other in a roundabout way.

Kitty responds to Scott's declaration of family and support by explicitly rejecting his revolution. That's fair, seeing as it doesn't exist, though calling it a revolution has some value. He's like 'well, you might. Anyway, how can I help?' Kitty bounced from the JGS and brought the teen O5 with her. They need a place to live! I'll cover *that* next time, especially the two Scotts and their dull conversation.

[rei-ismyname]

Cyclops vs God Emperor DOOM

Once the Illuminati's absurd secrets came to light, planet Earth prepared for the end. Scott Summers refused to accept that, hatching a Phoenix Egg. Ridiculous concept, frankly, that probably only works because the big dumb bird loves him. Alas, the only thing he could save was himself, ending up on DOOM's Battleworld. PhoenixClops thinks it sucks!

Cyclops thinks Battleworld sucks so much that he should burn it down and build something better. He proposes as such to various assembled heroes and middle managers, but they pretty much ignore him. Rude!

The group gets into a scuffle with Thanos and company, but God Emperor DOOM breaks it up. It's His planet (mostly true) and He doesn't approve of superpowered wars, secret or otherwise. DOOM offers mercy and instructs all present to kneel beneath His rule, His protection and His laws.

Scott Summers says 'fuck that, and you;' blasting DOOM with Phoenix fire. Honestly, I'm not sure what Hickman was going for here, because this takes place 3 years after Avengers vs X-Men. Cyclops has been down this road before and, famously, it was really messy shit. It's not entirely clear if this is Scott, or the house where Phoenix lives. The entire multiverse was destroyed, probably including the White Hot Room. Is he fire and life incarnate, or is Scott just a dude on fire? He's certainly Got Some Opinions, which is nice, though DOOM strongly disagrees.

Just a dude on fire, I think.

You see, Scott started on the Phoenix plan quite late in the narrative. He incubated the Phoenix (by sitting on it, I like to think) and successfully hatched it, but by then everything was blowing up. Unable to do anything about it, he teleported onto the Fantastic Four's 'life raft' as it fled reality. Everyone aboard looked at him like 'this is an Avengers/Fantastic Four book. How TF did a mutant that isn't Franklin get in here?' Sure, Beast was in the Illuminati replacing Chuck, but he's always been the exception.

Neither Scott or Phoenix are main characters here, unaware their presence is mainly to show DOOM's power. Cyclops got the last laugh here though - his defiance and death kickstarted the chain of events that brought DOOM down. It's a job that anyone can do, but he got to say dramatic things and leave a pretty corpse behind. What more can you ask for?

[rei-ismyname]

Agreed. Utterly baffling.

They did retcon it, but killing the Agnew crew wasn't his only crime AND Xavier never cleared that shit up with anyone lol. The world at large still thinks he did it.

What would Cyclops do?

I wonder if Marvel will ever live down teasing some mysterious unforgivable atrocity done by Cyclops for a year only to reveal it was... altering a Terrigen Cloud, and it wasn't even him. Ironically, he almost certainly would do it; it's just not that big a deal at all. I was pretty excited before the reveal, like shit yeah they actually pulled the trigger. I should have known, because they'd been trying for years.

Don't get me wrong, I love seeing this angsty white boy suffer, but what an anticlimax. It's really funny to me that Marvel spent about a decade trying to villainise the dude and failed pretty miserably. Young Scott's misery worked at first for shocking acts like killing Xavier, less so by the time of Death of X. Indeed, it was an important plot point that Hank and Logan were incredibly biased if not straight up lying. The teen O5 bailed for a reason.

Amadeus Cho referring to him as 'young Hitler' was not just a miss but flat out ridiculous. Impossible to take seriously. Specifically arguing over 'evil' in warped hypothetical moral relativism. Nobody here blinks at that analogy either; highly educated and experienced supers just acting like idiots. The moral judgement stands, accepted by Scott himself, with the decision being whether they should condemn the teen based on his future self's actions. Maybe that's part of it. Scott Summers takes criticism quite seriously and generally listens to his friends. His guilt over killing Xavier especially meant he never really advocated for himself.

Obviously there's some subjectivity in play with that but I feel like the dude was vindicated for the shit people were actually mad about. Hope/Phoenix, the Terrigen Cloud, X-Force to a degree, trashing The Avengers, uh, rescuing mutants from SHIELD/cops, etc. Even the impetus for Schism - using children in battle - made sense only if you forget what genre it is and ignore the context. It almost feels like everyone else went crazy for a decade or so. Here's Storm on some 'not all mutants' shit, said while cowering in Limbo a few months before going to war with the Inhumans.

Magik - you were there too, lol. You were on team 'fix the Terrigen Cloud.' Dunking on IvX is low-hanging fruit of course but I do wonder what it is that brings Marvel back to this dry well over and over. Even right now there's shades of past pariah Cyclops in how characters react to him. Rogue has chilled out a bit now but the tension is still there. One of many off aspects of Chuck Hunt was Scott Summers generally being less popular than Charles Xavier, which sounds crazy. Honestly, I wish they'd actually make him do something worth complaining about.

[rei-ismyname]

Cyclops declares war on SHIELD

Cyclops is balls deep in his fake revolution but every time he leaves the house killer robots get him. SHIELD sentinels specifically. The whole sitch is suss AF and Scott needs answers; so he pays everyone's favourite fascist a visit.

It's Bendis so there's a billion fucking words in every balloon, of course. Maria had literally just been threatening Hijack with torture over Scott's location, so it's very convenient that he came to her. She flat out denies any SHIELD involvement in the Sentinel attacks. Hmmm.

Scott calls bullshit on that. If he's going to believe it he needs proof, and it's not easy to prove a negative. Maria opens her mind to the Cuckoos willingly, who spill the fucking tea.

Sentinel knowledge 🚫

Concern that a third party is involved ✅

SHIELD is so Byzantine and casually evil that it's possible she'd be unaware ✅

Lust for Cyclops ✅

The Cuckoos are so real for this. Granted, they kinda do that to everyone but it's a huge power move to air out the head of SHIELD's private thirst. I'm curious what exactly she finds 'morally reprehensible' about Scott Summers. Being uppity probably. No doubt the stated reason would be the killing of Xavier, but did she even know him? Fuck what this fashy bitch thinks.

Anyway, Scott doesn't buy it, not fully. I'm not sure Maria is competent enough to fool mutant telepaths with false memories; also I doubt she'd be ashamed about building sentinels. She LOVES exercising state violence against rogue elements. There's also the matter of complicity through inaction, which is Scott's casus belli. She is absolutely guilty of that, not to mention torturing and killing mutants as a matter of course. She happily has Scott and Magik killed during the Malloy incident.

In parting, Maria Hill attempts to assert her authority and fails miserably. It's a very provocative move from Scott and I guarantee she's so horny she can't think straight. The war ends up as real as the revolution, but at least it looks cool. Cyclops is really good at fucking with SHIELD and the O*N*E; they really hate his guts lol.

[rei-ismyname]

Magneto, Master of Magnet!

Wow, that's amazing. 'I KILL YOU, 'X-chicken' is probably the least ridiculous thing Mags says. I need to find a ROM for this ASAP

[rei-ismyname]

What would Cyclops do?

I wonder if Marvel will ever live down teasing some mysterious unforgivable atrocity done by Cyclops for a year only to reveal it was... altering a Terrigen Cloud, and it wasn't even him. Ironically, he almost certainly would do it; it's just not that big a deal at all. I was pretty excited before the reveal, like shit yeah they actually pulled the trigger. I should have known, because they'd been trying for years.

Don't get me wrong, I love seeing this angsty white boy suffer, but what an anticlimax. It's really funny to me that Marvel spent about a decade trying to villainise the dude and failed pretty miserably. Young Scott's misery worked at first for shocking acts like killing Xavier, less so by the time of Death of X. Indeed, it was an important plot point that Hank and Logan were incredibly biased if not straight up lying. The teen O5 bailed for a reason.

Amadeus Cho referring to him as 'young Hitler' was not just a miss but flat out ridiculous. Impossible to take seriously. Specifically arguing over 'evil' in warped hypothetical moral relativism. Nobody here blinks at that analogy either; highly educated and experienced supers just acting like idiots. The moral judgement stands, accepted by Scott himself, with the decision being whether they should condemn the teen based on his future self's actions. Maybe that's part of it. Scott Summers takes criticism quite seriously and generally listens to his friends. His guilt over killing Xavier especially meant he never really advocated for himself.

Obviously there's some subjectivity in play with that but I feel like the dude was vindicated for the shit people were actually mad about. Hope/Phoenix, the Terrigen Cloud, X-Force to a degree, trashing The Avengers, uh, rescuing mutants from SHIELD/cops, etc. Even the impetus for Schism - using children in battle - made sense only if you forget what genre it is and ignore the context. It almost feels like everyone else went crazy for a decade or so. Here's Storm on some 'not all mutants' shit, said while cowering in Limbo a few months before going to war with the Inhumans.

Magik - you were there too, lol. You were on team 'fix the Terrigen Cloud.' Dunking on IvX is low-hanging fruit of course but I do wonder what it is that brings Marvel back to this dry well over and over. Even right now there's shades of past pariah Cyclops in how characters react to him. Rogue has chilled out a bit now but the tension is still there. One of many off aspects of Chuck Hunt was Scott Summers generally being less popular than Charles Xavier, which sounds crazy. Honestly, I wish they'd actually make him do something worth complaining about.

[rei-ismyname]

Chuck puts his PHD to use

Just as he can flawlessly identify even vibes of evil, Xavier is a mental illness detector. 'Psi probe' is such a gentle term. It must be super reassuring for Ororo to know for certain. As everyone knows, 'insane' and 'no mental illness' are the two genders with no in between.

It's an ability he's hung onto even as media portrayals of mental health evolved, admittedly with less success. I'm thinking of his MANDATORY attempted psychic surgery on Vulcan resulting in the death of everyone in the room, and permanent estrangement of the patient. My unserious headcanon is that he did his PHD before the DSM (1952) existed and hasn't kept up. We should probably be grateful he hasn't tried to cure gay.

[rei-ismyname]

❤️ Bova!

This comic is, as is usual for Wednesday’s comics, chosen by my Patrons. Speaking of…

Check my Patreon out if you’d like to support the comic, even a little bit helps. Or just to check out the reward tiers, there’s some neat bonus stuff and I tried to make them fun: https://www.patreon.com/waitingforthet

[rei-ismyname]

Magneto's 2 meetings with Namor

Magneto is full of drugs and power, trying to blow up a planet with his mind and failing. As he burns out, his life flashes before his eyes. The first memory is of the first time he met Namor, on his very first island with his original brotherhood. Early days, way back in X-Men #6.

These flashbacks are implied to be from Magneto's POV as an unreliable narrator. Namor is way more aggressive and standoffish than the OG depiction, while Magneto is a hundred times more polite and lucid.

Also missing is the GIANT GREEN MAGNET he used to fuck with, sadly. That thing was awesome. Magneto's proposal of alliance makes a lot more sense here. Originally his position was 'be my slave or die' which unsurprisingly had zero takers.

An appeal to common enemies and mutant solidarity doesn't fare much better (Namor doesn't care) but at least they don't end up as enemies. The Submariner rejects any kind of surface world bullshit, reasoning that they'd destroy themselves before it affected him.

Bad news on that front, as their recent meeting attests. Namor and the Illuminati have been trying to solve multiversal annihilation with little success. Division between surface dwellers and water breathers is irrelevant; everyone dies when the planet does.

Namor tasks Magneto with a contingency plan - destroying an alternate Earth before it crashes into this one. If he fails (he does, though he manages to live) the future of everything falls to Magneto. Their positions are inverted from the first meeting - Namor's usual bluster is replaced with half-sincere flattery. I wonder if this is before or after Namor meets with DOOM. Probably before, as he'd be looking a lot worse for wear by that point. Maybe he is being sincere; they have worked together quite a bit of late. Under normal circumstances Mags would be quite capable of the task but unlike Namor he's still suffering from Phoenix-related power fuckery.

[rei-ismyname]

Magneto fandom at the end of the world

Secret Wars (2015) is coming, which means bye bye planet Earth. Magneto doesn't know that though, and besides, I don't think it would change anything. He'd still put on a show, and that kind of shit attracts admirers. Mags fucks shit up and people (mostly) love it.

Namor of all people gave Mags a heads up about the incursions, instructing him to step up if Namor failed. Leaving nothing to chance, Mags amped up with power amplification drugs and technology.

Upon the final incursion, governments let the public know extinction was imminent then mic dropped. These people have hope, maybe, basking in Magneto (and Polaris') aura. Even if they fail there are worse ways to go out. Majestic - that's Magneto for you, lol.

Mags' theory about their growing audience is pretty cynical; that they want to watch him destroy a planet. Or maybe he's just saying that, as he's incapable of curbing his habit of melodrama. Lorna thinks everyone is loopy, but it's the end of the world. What can you do?

Honestly, she has a point. She's aware that these Magneto fan clubs existed before Armageddon and isn't very comfortable with the idea. There's irony in the fact that she saved these folks but they can't get enough of her dad. This kid proclaims Magneto his God as he tears enemy sentinels apart.

SHIELD, on the other hand, are not fans at all. Some trifling objection to his recent serial killer thing. Nevertheless, they take on the opposing Sentinels, freeing Magneto up to destroy the other planet. Smug isn't the word I'd use as he kills himself to save the world, but I'm sure the Master of Magnetism can respect spite.

Briar Raleigh invited Lorna to a Magneto fan club a while back. Well, she invited Lorna for a meeting and was like 'BTW I'm banging your dad and these losers aren't. Don't you just love his capacity for ultra violence?'

Lorna does not, and she finds this whole thing pretty fucked up. She's definitely not amused by their awe of her either, but she puts that aside when Briar gets to the point. Or maybe she's just humouring her. It's a pretty unreal tale. It's absolutely something Mags would do but the end of the world is a lot to wrap your head around.

While Magneto philosophises and speechifies, Lorna makes sure he knows what he's doing. There's a hint of persuasion there, but she knows it's not likely to work. Sadly, Briar convinced Lorna to come so Magneto could take her power. There was never any convincing and the weirdo didn't just ask her for it. He claims that he didn't want her to die beside him, that the sacrifice should be his alone. Lorna doesn't buy it, but there's no point arguing now.

Random citizens beg Magneto to save them but he doesn't have time for crowd control. They figure out that's what he's attempting anyway and have nothing better to do than enjoy the show.

Keyword is attempting. Magneto gives one last big push that Lorna is optimistic about. Briar insists otherwise, as energy flows out of every orifice.

Obviously he manages to somehow have an epiphany about Chuck as he burns from the inside out. He died as he lived - dramatic, gay, and a neglectful father. Everyone hoped he could pull it off but it was always a long shot.

In the end Magneto burned himself out and the world ended anyway. It looked really badass and cool though, and as Lorna says in the second before the universe stops existing, he tried. Tragically, nobody remembers this, not even Magneto. After God Emperor DOOM saved all of existence (and Richards, I guess) the world was eventually remade almost exactly as it was. Maybe they forgot to recreate the Magneto fanclub, because I haven't seen them for a while. Briar Raleigh returned, but she eventually got bored and went elsewhere. She'll show up again eventually. It's comic books; it's inevitable.

[rei-ismyname]

Magneto's relationship advice

I really enjoy most portrayals of Magneto and Rogue as healthy, amicable exes. Just one reason why that line in Raid on Graymalkin makes me see red. Anyway, Rogue and Gumboot just got married, taking advantage of the Rabbi's presence after Kitty ghosted Piotr. It's a nice thought; apologising for not inviting Mags to the wedding. I, for one, would have eaten up that drama and left no crumbs. Every wedding deserves Magneto.

Rogue has always been the least judgmental towards Magneto's flip-flopping priorities. Reasonable, especially compared to her peers. I think the apology is only part of the reason she asked for him, though. Mags has been there for a lot of her power incontinence, protected by his own powers. He's also pretty consistently given excellent advice, respecting her agency and listening. It's not the first time he's helped her reach for what makes her happy, even when that's not him. That Gambit 'isn't going anywhere' is an excellent, if obvious, observation. Picking up that she's troubled and zeroing in on the commitment she's just made is what's truly shrewd and supportive. She's just married this bozo; can she talk to him? Yes, it seems, though she's anxious about scaring him off. Sometimes it's nice to get external validation when you're in your head about something, and Magneto is a font of emotional intelligence when he chooses to use it.

Honestly, the whole 'power inhibitor so they can fuck' thing has felt super uncomfortable to me. There's plenty of other reasons why Rogue would want better control, but the wedding framing centres sex; made explicit on the honeymoon. Your friends being all up in your sex life is uncomfortable enough. As thoughtful as the bracelet is, and an improvement over the LITERAL COLLAR, it still gives intense headaches. Not exactly conducive to sexual fulfilment, ya know? The anvillicious analogy of the expectation and pressure on AFAB folks to handle birth control could not be clearer, though it's played frustratingly straight. I don't see Gambit getting strapped with painful gizmos or looking into it. The onus is entirely on Rogue. This dynamic isn't present anymore and I'm not sure how I feel about that. The angst was getting a bit old, but it never felt particularly progressive to me.

[rei-ismyname]

I'm telling my grandkids this is Deathbird

Chill out Mags, 'handing over to the authorities' is snitching. I'm not actually having kids or grandkids but if I was they'd be like the New Mutants.

Bird Brain is actually much better behaved than Deathbird tbh. Doug should use this language more often IMO.

This shit probably wouldn't work with Deathbird; she'd stick up the malt shoppe and get caught because she's incompetent. I wonder how Birdbrain is doing these days. It's wild to see Rahne/Doug teased a little bit. That didn't last long.

[rei-ismyname]

Lunar Polycule enjoys a snow day

Look at these Camelot motherfuckers chilling in the snow. For once Logan is the sensible one rocking a scarf. Protect ya neck, etc. Jean looks like she's wearing a kimono - no wonder Weebverine is checking her out. I had something clever to say about their temperaments and choice of jacket colours but melancholic Jean is the only one that kinda fits. Scott is far from Sanguine and Logan is only occasionally phlegmatic. Maybe they're swapping clothes

[rei-ismyname]

James Proudstar wants to kill Chuck

"Open your eyes, old man. The end of your life is at hand." Jimmy Proudstar here has been nursing a grudge against Charles Xavier for getting his brother John killed all those years ago. Chuck has no telepathy right now so he has to convince him the hard way. He's really not keen to be stabbed to death, of course.

Jimmy's anger is certainly sympathetic even if he's describing events he has no way of knowing. John absolutely tried very hard to die on a mission vs Count Nefaria, but how much culpability does Xavier have for that? His assertion that John joined him of his own free will is true, though arguably there was manipulation involved. The same reverse psychology Chuck employs here turned John from completely dismissive to eager to sign up. There's something to be said for a rich white dude enlisting a young Apache man in his private war but I'm not very knowledgeable about the specific dynamics. I feel confident saying that Xavier was callous and manipulative, but his culpability in John's death is minor compared to his own agency.

In the end, Jimmy can't do it and collapses into guilt and recrimination. He shares a lot of John's insecurities but grief is clearly the primary motivator. To his credit, Chuck comforts Jimmy and stops Rogue taking him out - assuring him that being unable to murder him is not a sign of weakness. He overeggs the pudding a bit, a sign of Claremont's awkward writing of First Nation's characters.

Chuck makes a good point about justice and improvement over strict legalisms and the two men part on good terms. John Proudstar stayed dead a really long time for a comic book character, only returning in Trial of Magneto. He didn't blame Xavier or the X-Men for his death but he really wasn't happy with Jimmy following in his footsteps. He had venom for Chuck, Emma, Cable, and Cyclops; calling them 'vultures' who made Jimmy 'fight in their wars.' He also beat the shit out of Vulcan for unclear reasons, but he did seem to move past it. He's been regressed a bit in From The Ashes so it's hard to tell where he's at now, and fuck knows where Jimmy is. Maybe we'll see them at the Hellfire Vigil.

[rei-ismyname]

I'd never noticed he's wearing a 'NO FEAR' t-shirt, lol. That child is wild

X-Factor #116

"None of you... Have the right to talk about Aurora like she isn't there!"

[rei-ismyname]

They really do and they're the worst

Massaging their stiff shoulders and necks while remarking that they wish they’d known how good they had it when they were your age, slightly older sources reported Thursday that if you think your body feels bad now, just you wait. “Hoo boy, you might think things hurt already, but buckle up, because this is just the beginning,” said one source, who despite being just four years older than you repeatedly warned that in terms of walking, bending, and even sleeping, it was all downhill from the age you are now. 

Full Story

[rei-ismyname]

Teen O5 meet Silver Age Magneto

It was bound to happen eventually, right? With all that time travelling the All-New X-Men were bound to run into their arch-nemesis from their own time - Magneto! Something isn't right tho; they watch themselves fight Mags with the Brotherhood dead at their feet.

Obviously this is not the Magneto they've been palling around with. The bastard shrugs off the death of his Brotherhood and suggests the X-Men take their place. Everyone is pretty confused, except for the killer O5, who wanted all these people here and now for a reason.

Clearly it's the jackass future Brotherhood - Raze, Xavier Jr etc. They're the worst, but their plan is a good one - to kill the original O5 and Magneto then take their place - except for a few details. They fire a missile on their position and body slide away, overlooking that Magneto shouldn't even need help to disarm the missile. Beast takes the initiative and time travels them out, including Silver Age Magneto.

Hopefully that explosion didn't kill anyone important! Outside of space and time, Silver Age Magneto wigs out. From his perspective these kids have become ruthless over the last few weeks, slaying his minions in assassinations and preemptive strikes. He quickly clocks that they're different, accepting that they're temporarily on the same page. Having an unobstructed view of all space-time might be a factor there too.

Speaking of - Magneto likes what he sees. He's not sure of the context but he knows power when he sees it, musing on the conquest of humanity. Jean shuts that shit down ASAP, though loser Warren and bigger loser Jimmy undermine her.

Mags claps back but Jean puts her foot down. Scott and Bloodstorm share the same thought Jimmy and Warren did, so Jean comes down on them too. Scott should know better, and sure enough Jean knows what she's doing. She appeases Silver Age Magneto with half-truths and appeals to Chuck, getting him onside and sharing his perspective.

The X-Men fret about screwing up all of time, especially killing people in general. Mags pipes up at that, being like 'don't knock it til you try it kiddos! Let's take over the world.' Nobody takes that too seriously though.

Jean proposes storming the mansion and fucking up the X-Men; Magneto obviously jumps at the chance. He points out that he's been there before - referring to the time he evicted them, captured Warren's parents, and set up a cloning facility. He shouldn't be too pleased about that memory, as it ended with him reabducted by The Stranger and imprisoned in space for months.

It's a fight! They fuck the Future Brotherhood up and force them to flee, but sadly they don't kill them. Freeing this time period's Xavier tips the scales and gives them a clue of how to set things right. When they time travel out they leave him and Mags together, though we unfortunately don't get to see that conversation. I'm pretty sure it gets overwritten anyway, so neither man is aware it ever happened. Boy, this run really leaned into casual time travel shit. These MFs went everywhere and everywhen.